Penn State set to host Michigan TE commit Andrew Rappleyea
Penn State is set to host one of its top tight end prospects in the near future.
Andrew Rappleyea, a four-star prospect from the Class of 2023, tweeted Friday night that he’ll be back in State College next weekend, March 19-20. It’s one of three visits that he set. Michigan will host him the following weekend, March 24-25, with Boston College getting him on campus April 2.
Of course, Rappleyea is committed to Michigan. The 6-foot-4, 215-pound New York native joined the Wolverines back on Jan. 16, but prior to that, many believed he was close to committing to Penn State.
At the end of November, Rappleyea visited Penn State on a weekday, spending a day with lead recruiter Ty Howle, as well James Franklin and other staffers. Going into December, the Nittany Lions were considered the team to beat, despite the fact that, at the time, they held commitments from two players who could play tight end: Mathias Barnwell and Joey Schlaffer.
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Then, Penn State added another potential tight end in Good Counsel prospect Neeo Avery, who committed on New Year’s Eve. After that, it appeared as if there was no room for Rappleyea. He went on to visit Michigan on Jan. 15, and would up committing a day later.
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Now, much has changed at both Penn State and Michigan. The Nittany Lions have shuffled around their tight end board, with Barnwell now expected to play defensive tackle, while Avery confirmed he’ll focus on defensive end moving forward. Instead of potentially three tight ends committed, Penn State now has just one.
On top of that, Michigan made changes to its coaching staff. Rappleyea was recruited by Jay Harbaugh, who was previously the Wolverines’ tight end coach. That changed though a few weeks ago, however, as he’s now set to coach safeties. Michigan has hired previous graduate assistant and former player Grant Newsome to now coach tight ends.
“Ty Howle, [Penn State’s] tight ends coach, has been great to me. He’s been recruiting me really hard,” Rappleyea said back in December. “Slim [Mahon] has also been recruiting me a good bit. I also talk to Coach [James] Franklin directly, too, so they’ve been great at building a relationship with me. They’re just great people and I have great relationships going with them. Also, the way they use the position is great.”
